Location:  Southwoods Park, 350 S. 35^th Street

A donation from the family of Rocky Rothchild through the WestParks Foundation was used to plant approximately one acre of high-quality prairie in Southwoods Park near the entrance to the Rothchild Nature Trail in 1998. The slopes around the parking area in Southwoods Park were also planted in prairie grasses and forbs.  Both areas are now regularly maintained through prescribed burns, and the number and quality of species is increasing.

A fairly small remnant of a rare native plant community, savanna prairie, exists on a south-facing slope in Southwoods Park. Dan George, Grounds Maintenance Specialist for the City of West Des Moines, was the first employee to attend the “Restoring Native Plant Communities” course through Des Moines Area Community College in 2004. He used this prairie in his final report and made recommendations for improvement that are now being carried out.

Jordan Creek Greenway Native Prairie Restoration

Location:  Northeast corner of Prairie View Drive & E.P. True Parkway

Brian Fowler, Parks Maintenance Supervisor, and Mark Smith, Grounds Maintenance Specialist for the City of West Des Moines, attended the “Restoring Native Plant Communities” course in 2005. A restoration of native prairie was done in this location as a part of recommendations made by Mark Smith in his final report. This is an excellent example of a prairie restoration.

Raccoon River Park Natural Landscaping
Location:  Raccoon River Park, 2500 Grand Avenue

With the large open areas that existed at Raccoon River Park came a large amount of mowing. Due to the presence of water wells in the park, the turfgrass cannot be treated with any fertilizers or herbicides. In 1999, it was decided to convert some of the mowed turf into natural landscape areas through the planting of native grasses and forbs. This was done in the spring of 2000, and as the areas become more established, they add greatly to the natural character of the park. These areas are now being managed through prescribed burns. 

Fire Station #18 Natural Landscaping
Location:  5025 Grand Avenue

The open space around this fire station was mostly planted in a shortgrass prairie mix with mowed turf only existing in a few areas.  The prairie was planted in 2003. This is especially beneficial due to the steep slopes around the station that make mowing difficult.  The first prescribed burn on this area was done in March 2006.

Prairie Seed Harvest

Location:  Raccoon River Park, 2500 Grand Avenue

In November of 2006, the Parks and Recreation Department invited other City staff to help harvest seed from prairie areas at Raccoon River Park.  A dozen people participated on a gorgeous fall day by collecting bags of seed from grasses and forbs.  This seed was processed by Department staff and used to help restore other prairie areas in the parks system.

Natural Landscaping Program

Locations:  Ashawa Park, 4431 Waterford Drive;
City Hall, 4200 Mills Civic Parkway;
Southwoods Park, 350 S. 35^th Street;
Crossroads Park, 5205 Ashworth Road;
Beh Glen, 1900 E.P.True Parkway;
Knolls Park, 5150 Aspen Drive

A committee of Parks & Recreation Department staff worked together to plan a natural landscaping program for existing parks. This included the planting of either a native shortgrass mix or a combination of native grasses and forbs in several different park areas. As a precursor to the actual planting, experimental areas were left unmown during the summers of 2004 and 2005 to gauge public reaction. Natural landscaping areas in Ashawa Park were also planted as a pilot project. As a part of this program, a brochure was developed to help in educating the public on natural landscaping in parks. As new areas of City property are converted to natural landscaping, the brochure is sent to adjacent property owners. This Natural Landscaping Presentation will also provide loads of valuable information about the program.

Additional new and turf conversions to natural landscaping were done in 2011 and 2012 to include: 

Brookview Park, 400 81^st Street;
Valley View Park (East Side), 255 81^st Street;
Wilson Park, 289 9^th Street;
Pearson Park, 1256 19^th Street;
Jordan Creek Park (behind Bike World) and 50^th Street
Soccer, 310 50^th Street;
Windsor Rugby Field detention area, 39^th and EP True Parkway;
Maple Grove Park, 9350 Chalk Street; and the 

Law Enforcement Center at 250 Mills Civic Parkway. 

These recent plantings added an additional 28 acres to the natural landscaping program. The City of West Des Moines has added several pieces of equipment to their fleet to specifically assist with this program, including a native seed drill, disc, and land leveler.